Verition Fund Management LLC Grows Position in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

Verition Fund Management LLC grew its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 235.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 776,787 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 545,226 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC owned about 0.09% of Walgreens Boots Alliance worth $6,960,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 162.5% in the 2nd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,100 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 87.0% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 71.2% during the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 2,453 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 1,020 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.59% of the company’s stock.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WBA opened at $9.02 on Monday. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 1-year low of $8.08 and a 1-year high of $27.05. The stock has a market cap of $7.80 billion, a P/E ratio of -0.90, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $9.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $11.20.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.03. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a positive return on equity of 14.23% and a negative net margin of 5.85%. The company had revenue of $37.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.75 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.67 EPS. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.09%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s payout ratio is currently -9.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $7.50 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $11.00 to $7.50 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.88.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Company Profile

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc operates as a healthcare, pharmacy, and retail company in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and internationally. It operates through three segments: U.S. Retail Pharmacy, International, and U.S. Healthcare. The U.S. Retail Pharmacy segment engages in operation of the retail drugstores, health and wellness services, specialty, and home delivery pharmacy services, which offers health and wellness, beauty, personal care and consumables, and general merchandise.